20050714022829A

(-23) Witnesses reported that the pilot had completed the last swath run after applying chemical to a field of canola. The aircraft continued beyond the end of the field to which the chemical had been applied for another 1/2 ile. At that point a witness said the aircraft did an abrupt pull up to an unusually high nose attitude, never exceeded 200 feet altitude above the ground and abruptly pitched to the right and entered an unusually nose low attitude. The aircraft was then obscured from view by intervening low ridges. One witness reported hearing two loud noises in quick succession. The aircraft struck the ground in a nose down attitude of approximately 80 degrees. The wings were nearly level when the aircraft struck the ground with the right wing striking the ground first. Evidence of a stall/spin accident was displayed from the ground impact signs. The engine was buried to a depth of nearly 4 feet. The left wing flap was down to full at about 30 degrees, but the right wing flap was up. This, later, was discovered to be a failure of brackets on the left flap since all the drive linkage was in the flap up position. The pilot succumbed to his injuries 8 hours later in a hospital. No fire ensued and the aircraft was destroyed.